I hereby seek refuge in Allah from thinking ability; its allurement, its enticement and its deception for this work of mine which I have done to recite and comprehend the Qur’an in its original Arabic form then interpret what I have understood in English.

While being incapable of praising as deep as we should, I offer to Allah, Rabb of all worlds, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, all my compliments that I can come up with and conceive with my humble thinking ability, and I offer my sincerest gratitude to Him for bestowing me, this humble, poor and servile one, His blessings and felicity to offer the reciters an English interpretation of the Qur’an.

I entreat our Great Rabb to look after, protect and support us together with all the people who serve for the religion of Allah, as He did for His prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), his family and companions.

In this work of mine, in which I have striven to comprehend the messages of our Rabb plainly and offer to all people, I have not sought for anything except than the countenance of Allah. Due to our weakness and our comprehension is limited, there are definitely deficiencies. However, my Rabb is witness that no wrong has been done intentionally. Therefore, I hope that our great Rabb forgives me.

This interpretation that is presented here is a result of the analyses that were meticulously conducted by taking into account the ancient Arabic Language (with its vocabulary, grammar and literature) and the unity of the Qur’an. Evidences, sources and justifications relevant to this interpretation that we present are available in our work titled as Tebyinu’l Qur’an. Our readers who wish to get detailed information, review and examine our works, they can see these in Tebyinu’l Qur’an that has been published as 8 volumes or in our websites.

Before presenting the interpretation, we wish to give our readers brief and concise information about the Qur’an.

THE QUR’AN

The root meaning of the word Qur’an which is the proper name of the book that was revealed from Allah to His messenger Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him) is “accumulation and distribution”. From this point forth, the deed of “piling up the letters to form words, then words to form sentences and distribution of them” (reciting) was represented with this word. Accordingly, the word Qur’an means “that which is recited”. We, however, prefer the meaning of “that which is learned and taught”.

The word “Qur’an” is the proper name of the book that was revealed to from Allah to His Messenger Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him).

AYAH

The word Ayah is the Arabic word for “evidence/sign”. The expression Ayat of Allah, in general, defines “the beings and the systems that are the evidences/signs of the existence and the oneness of Allah”; whereas, Ayat of the Qur’an means “the sentences coming from Allah which are evidences/signs so man may follow the righteous path”.

In this interpretation, any reference to the word Ayah in the sense of evidence/sign to the existence and the oneness of Allah is expressed as “evidence/sign”; in the sense of “sentences coming from Allah which are evidences/signs so man may follow the righteous path” is expressed as Ayah only; and in the cases where the word includes both of the meanings, “Ayah/evidence/sign” form is used.

SURAH

The literal meanings of this word are “residue/debris”, “a wall/a rampart that surrounds city”, “vicinity-parts of a house such as living room, kitchen, rooms, etc. When it is said Surah of the Qur’an, sections of the Qur’an; sections in the order of revelation or subject sections is intended.

The Ayat which were revealed piece by piece, division by division, section by section, as we learn from the Qur’an, were written page by page starting from the early periods and thus formed into surah. Insomuch as in those Ayat revealed during the Meccan period, Jonas/38, Hud/13 and Abasa/13 as well as those revealed during the Medinan period, Al-Baqara/23, At-Tawbah/64, 86, 124, 127, An-Nur/1 and Muhammad/20; the surat of the Qur’an and pages of the Qur’an are mentioned. However, the pages of Qur’an mentioned are neither the 605 pages of Qur’an that we have today nor the surah are the 114 surat of the Qur’an. Because, the pages of Qur’an we have today were written by calligraphists. The 114 surat, on the other hand, were formed many years later by the opinion, understanding and approach of a part of the community but not the perception of surah prevalent at the time when those Ayat which mention the “surah”, were revealed. Hence, according to the existing resources, there are differences in the Mushafs and numbers of Ayat in the surat which were formed by the first sahabah (close friends of the prophet).

Unfortunately, the surat in the current Mushafs of the Qur’an are far from representing the properties of the surah as mentioned in the Qur’an neither in terms of divisions nor subjects. The sections that are expected to clarify the comprehension of the meaning, have sadly rendered many surah hard to comprehend and even impossible at times.

In our opinion, every division (a group of revelation) in the Qur’an was a page and every subject matter was one surah. I would wish that the chronicle of every division was determined and the surat were compliant with the perception of surah as the Qur’an defined.

NAMES OF THE SURAT

The Surat were named in reference to a significant term within it or its general content with such names as Al-Baqara (The Heifer), An-Nisa’ (The Women), Yusuf (Joseph), Yunus (Jonas), etc. however, this naming has no connection with Allah and His Prophet.

DIVISION

Division means “a group of Ayat which descended at once”. While a division may consist of a single Ayah, it may contain tens, even hundreds of Ayat.

The Qur’an was not revealed outright entirety, instead it was revealed division by division within a timeframe of almost 23 years in accordance with the events, changes and problems in the society. All Ayat that belong to a topic are not together.

Here, by the permission of Allah, divisions are formed pursuant to their meanings and technical properties by this servant and also erroneous classification and chronological order in the Official Mushaf are corrected; Ayat in many paragraphs are reorganized and these are indicated both in footnotes and under the respective division. Surely our revision is not decisive [i.e. not final and not irrevocable]. A final revision and reorganization must be fulfilled by the experts and with collaboration of Muslims from all around the world. We have taken the first step and addressed the problem to all of those who have mercy, conscience and faith.

MECCAN – MEDINAN SURAH & AYAT

The Qur’an started to be sent down to the Prophet of Allah in Mecca and after the hijra (immigration from Mecca to Medina), continued to be revealed –until a short while before his death- in Medina. Classification of the surat as Meccan and Medinan is based on the hijra (immigration from Mecca to Medina) without considering the places they were revealed.

Although the surat are classified as Meccan and Medinan, it is known that some surat are not entirely Meccan or Medinan. That is to say, some Meccan surat contain Medinan Ayat and some Medinan surat contain Meccan Ayat. All these are also shown in this work.

Unfortunately, there is no consensus on how many of the surat and Ayat are Meccan, Medinan or mixed and this seems to continue in the future.

TYPES OF AYAT

According to the Official Mushaf of the Qur’an and as stated in the Surah Ali-Imran/Ayah 7 (Division 477), the Ayat of the Qur’an are grouped into as decisive (muhkam) and analogous (mutashabeh).

DECISIVE AYAT

The Arabic word muhkam means “that contains a judgment”. Therefore, the decisive (muhkam) ayat mean that “the ayat that contain such principles which keep people away from chaos and prevent them from doing wrong deeds”. As stated in the Qur’an, these Ayat are the foundation of the book. These Ayat contain the rules to be implemented in the life. The purpose of the revelation of the book is to make people implement the principles in these Ayat.

ANALOGOUS AYAT

As all languages have synonymous and homonymous words; the words have literal and metaphorical meanings. There occurs more than one meaning in the sentences that are made of these words. Any sentence that has more than one meaning is called an “analogous (mutashabeh) sentence”. And if such a sentence is a Qur’anic sentence then it is called an “analogous Ayah”. The fact that these Ayat were uttered by the Prophet who was not an expert in linguistics, and that he did not have the expertise to do so does imply that none of these Ayat belongs to him. Furthermore, the multiple meanings which the words of the Qur’an contain, provide that the Qur’an will keep its freshness throughout the ages and the believers will always be active and interactive. According to the Surah Ali-Imran/7 (Division 477), prioritization of the meaning of these Ayat [which of the multiple meanings of these Ayat is to be considered primarily] may only be known by Allah and experts of the specific subject.

PRIORITIZATION OF A MEANING

Evolved from the literal meaning of “regression”, the word Taw’il is used to mean “to sequence” i.e. “to put one after another as first, second, third meaning/put in order, order by priority”

Accordingly, prioritization of a meaning of analogous Ayat means “sequencing of the respective Ayat by their beautiful, similar and explicit meanings; prioritization of these meanings”. It does not mean that the Qur’an contain certain unambiguous Ayat and they are known only to Allah and the scholars called “the Rasihun”.

TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE QUR’AN

Translation is “the act of rendering a text into another language than the one it is written”. However, due to cultural, traditional differences between languages, and the diversity arising from authentic conceptualization and imagination, literal translation of objects, acts, situations, symbols and emotions is not possible. Therefore, the original text is not translated verbatim, containing all characteristics and emphasis contained therein but only the core sense is conveyed [communication of mental and emotional message]. Therefore, a verbatim translation of an ordinary text [an exact representation of authentic characteristics of the original text] is not possible. Accordingly, verbatim translation of works of art such as poems, novels, stories, etc. is not possible either.

Verbatim translation [exact representation] of the Qur’an, a miracle of literature, which originally is in Arabic and has many analogous Ayat, into another language is definitely not possible. Therefore, artistic aspects of the Qur’an and deep emphasis contained in it must be left in its original form and only messages must be carried over by opting one of the analogous meanings. The meaning acquired this way is called “interpretation”.

Interpretations may not be considered as decisive [an exact representation of the original will of Allah]. Because an interpretation of the Qur’an by a person is the emphasis of one of the rich meanings of the Qur’an in line with her/his own determination. This emphasis varies in accordance with the level of wisdom of the respective individuals.

OBLIGATION TO TRANSLATE AND INTERPRET THE QUR’AN

Our Great Rabb sent the holy books before the Qur’an in the native languages of the respective communities to which He wanted to communicate His messages, and chose Prophets from these communities as well. The reason for this is that our Rabb wanted to ensure that His messages are fully comprehended by the people they were addressed.

“And We sent them every messenger only with the language of his people so he might make clear. Then Allah leads astray whomever He wills/whoever wills and He guides whomever He wills/whoever wills to the righteous path. And He is the One Who is the most exalted, the most powerful, the most honorable, the invincible/the subduer, the best law maker, the One Who precludes corruption best/makes incorruptible. (72/14, Surah Abraham (Ibrahim)/4; Division 318)

Hence, messages conveyed by Adam, Noah, Enoch (Idris), Abraham (Ibrahim), Moses, Jesus and other prophets were all in the language of their people. Therefore, since the Qur’an was sent to a people who speak Arabic, it was sent down in Arabic. In accordance with this divine path, had the Qur’an been revealed to Turks, it would have been in Turkish, had it been revealed to Greeks, it would have been in Greek or had it been revealed to French, it would have been in French. Insomuch that for the people to comprehend the conveyed message accurately, the message should be in their language and that they understand it accurately depends on that they should know their own language well. If those who read it do not know Arabic well while the Qur’an is in Arabic, it is impossible for them to understand the message well.

Hundreds-thousands of peoples who speak different languages live in the world. Since it is impossible for all humankind to learn Arabic, translation of the Qur’an in other languages is an obligation. Fulfillment of this obligation and thus conveying the message of Allah to all humankind is a spiritual liability of the Muslims.

The most important duty of those of knowledge who are determined to fulfill this liability is to have a very good comprehension of Arabic, the language of the Qur’an, and the language in which the Qur’an is to be translated, thus leaving not even a single word which is not translated into the respective language. It is impossible for a deficient and inadequate translation to convey the message of Allah as it should. It is also not sufficient to use cognates in the target language for words and concepts. Any Qur’anic word must be examined in their pure form prevalent in the time they were revealed and thus carried to the present. Otherwise, the message can not be conveyed as it must be. There is no problem if the expressions of that time are modernized and conveyed in line with benefit and loss. Because it is not the words that is important but the message.

Consequences of the emphasis on language and interpretation and attitudes in the opposite direction are explained in the Qur’an (see Official Mushaf; Al-Baqara/75; An-Nisa/46; Al-Ma’idah/13, 41).

Ultimately, the Qur’an must be translated into other languages so as to ensure that each and every word is comprehended completely. The final translated form must not have even a single ambiguous word. If the translation that you have is ambiguous or incomprehensible, this is not due to the deficiency of the Qur’an but the translator.

THE QUR’AN IS A MIRACLE

• In terms of explicitness [unambiguity, uniformity and expediency], terseness [eloquence in a concise manner]; the Qur’an is a unique book and a literary Magnum Opus that masters many rhetoric devices. However, Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), Messenger of Allah, had no literary background nor received any education. Therefore, it is not possible that he could have written such an extensive book.

The Qur’an is a miracle occurred in the field of literature, in which Arabs are the foremost. Indeed, the Arabic literature has been a resource for the literature of all the world. The Qur’an is a miracle of literature. A member of a community, which is known for its higher level in the literature field came forward and recited such expressions that fascinated everyone, men of letters in particular. The fact that this person, who was well known to every member of his community, had never been interested in the literature and the extraordinary nature of the Ayat and surat he recited, which no one could have composed –even if they help one another –, greatly surprised everyone who heeded them. While in his daily life he spoke as the Muhammad of Mecca whom everyone knew, he showed a miracle with the Qur’an he recited, which he said was revealed to him.

• The Qur’an acknowledges the holy books and messengers that preceded it. However, had the Qur’an been written by messenger himself, he would certainly have indulged his passions and instead of acknowledging the holy books and messengers that preceded him, he would have taken all the credit for everything he recited.

• Since the Qur’an accommodates endless information on physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, cosmology, education, psychology and sociology, it is indeed a unique book in terms of its content and doctrine. Yet, having grown in Mecca, every part of our Prophet’s life was known to everybody and there was no school and no lecturer around him. Therefore, it was impossible for him to contemplate about the information contained within the Qur’an, yet alone know them. It is explained as follows in the Qur’an that this divine nature of the Qur’an will continue until Qiyamat [Resurrection]; We will show them Our evidences/signs in other worlds and within themselves until it becomes clear that it is the truth. Is it not sufficient that your Rabb is witness over all things? (61/41, Surah Fussilat (Detailed)/53 (Division 249).

• The Qur’an mentions about many historical events. Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), on the other hand, was a person who was unaware of these events. It was impossible for him to know or invent these events without mistakes.

• The Qur’an provides information not only from the past but also future. Veracity of this information has been proven through the time. It is not possible for a person to inform about such accurate news which came true all by himself.

• The Qur’an comprises many miracles structurally as well. That is, despite its large volume, it contains no contradictions or inconsistencies in any means. This is explained in the Surah An-Nisa/82 (Division 548) as follows; Do they not contemplate the Qur’an properly? If it had been from anyone but Allah, they would have found many contradictions in it. It is obvious that a person with insufficient capability for this work can not write such a book.

These properties of the Qur’an, which can be ascribed by anyone who contemplates thereupon, are attestations of the fact that the Qur’an was not work of our Prophet. This is also attested by the statement revealed in the Surah Yunus (Jonah/37-39 (Division 176); “And this Qur’an is not that which has been invented by those that are inferior to Allah. But, it is only a confirmation of what is within and a detailed explanation of the Torah. There is nothing to be doubted in it. It is from Rabb of all universes”, thus stating that the Qur’an was sent down by Allah by means of revelation.

MUSHAF

The word Mushaf means “a collection of sheets compiled into a hardcover book”. While basically every book is a mushaf, this word has been used specifically for the Qur’an.

According to historical records, the Qur’an was not called Mushaf in the time of the Messenger of Allah (Rasulullah) as it was still being revealed and was not compiled into a hardcover book. This name was given only after it was compiled into a book in the time of Uthman. All Mushaf published today is considered to have been copied from the original that was compiled in the time of Uthman.

ORGANIZATION OF CURRENT MUSHAF

The Ayat of the Qur’an were revealed in Tarteel [in proper order, consecutively; the method used to prevent disorganization of sentences, paragraphs and passages] and division by division (see Surah Furqan/32 (Division 97)). Allah commanded His Messenger to recite the Qur’an in Tarteel (see Surah Al-Muzzammil/4 (Division 10)). Accordingly, the Messenger of Allah (Rasulullah) dictated and ensured that the Qur’an was learned division by division.

Since paper was not available at the time, the Ayat were recorded on leather, papyrus, flat bones, stones, wood, bricks/tablets, etc. While initially sorted in divisions and in the proper order, the Ayat then were reorganized into surat by the sahabah (close friends of the prophet).

Unfortunately, the chronological order was not taken into account in the current Mushaf, the proper order; accurate, organized arrangement was not considered, sentences of many divisions [paragraph or passages] were not organized properly and typographic errors made by calligraphers were not corrected. We hereby show hundreds of these errors. We leave the duty to explain who did so and why to the historians. However, it should also be stated that: Information on this matter was given in the Surah Fussilet/26 (Division 245 in our work): “And the infidels; those who consciously deny the divinity of Allah and the fact that He is Rabb said: “Do not listen to this Qur’an if you want to prevail, and do trivial things/prevent that it should be understood in every way””.

We did not consider to show these grammatical and typographic errors (except for the inordinate faults contained in the ayat 10 and 53 of the Surah Az-Zumar) which have been known to all since the first day. We do not wish to convey the information that is within the historical and rumor books. Analyzing the current Mushaf, we hereby exhibit, as a debt of faith, something that no one has or could put forth in good faith and honesty; that those paragraphs, chapters and sentences of the Qur’an have been disorganized; that the Qur’an has been rendered incomprehensible and misunderstandable.

The contemporary arrangement of the current Mushaf is incompliant with the Arabiyyan [the most perfect narration and the most complete compliance with the grammar rules] and mubeen [explicit, unambiguous] nature and tarteel [in proper order; the method used to prevent disorganization of sentences, paragraphs and passages] property of the Qur’an. It is seen that hundreds, even thousands of sentences are inserted between the two sentences of a paragraph, certain elements of a sentence in an Ayah are carried to tens of sentences away. Many Ayat are misunderstood or not understood at all due to these errors in the Mushaf while many others have been rendered incomprehensible without adding or removing certain elements [bracketing].

So, the Qur’an has lost its function, its attraction; and the Qur’an, “that was sent group by group/division by division and overthrow all what opposes it, revive the peoples, separate the truth and the falsehood as it revives, which reminds as an excuse or a warning”, made scholars and the wise submit, became a soul and a light to the community, left no one who did not believe before he was dead, has been stripped off its “the book of life” characteristic and rendered into a book of graveyards, mosques and legends. Therefore, now, it is so that no one comes to Islam by researching the Qur’an. Since the religion can not be understood from the Qur’an, many madhhab (sect) imams, tariqa sheiks, community leaders have emerged to recite and teach the Religion. Ultimately, instead of the religion of Islam, madhhab-tariqa religions have emerged.

In this work of ours, we have specified and reorganized hundreds of these to the extent that we are capable of. Many aspects of this matter have already been in many books that were written centuries ago.

Those who are responsible for this – as we mentioned above – were the ones who fulfilled the first organization, who did not correct the flaws at once and then kept silent even after they became aware of these.

It is upon every mumin (believer) by the debt of faith to not to keep silent, and to overlook this truth and to reorganize the Mushaf in sincere and honesty.

The flaw we mention herein is related to the current Mushaf and has no connection with the Qur’an. The Qur’an is within the Mushaf entirety; no single ayah that was revealed has been left out. There is nothing but the ayat in the Mushaf.

THE ORDER OF REVELATION

Reading the Qur’an in the chronological order of the revelation allows for a better understanding of it. For instance, the Mushaf that was made to be compiled by Caliph Uthman and is known as the “Official Mushaf” because it was arranged pursuant to the political view of the current government was formed in compliance with the opinion of the Sahabah (close friends of the prophet). Those who do not have sufficient knowledge on the Qur’an and Islam; are yet to know the Qur’an; and live in an environment of disbelief and association of Allah similar to the time before Islam are exposed to the risk of not benefiting from the Qur’an as they should. Anyone who intends to read the Qur’an in its current form, called the “Official Mushaf”, whether in Arabic or in any other language, will definitely be confused when he reads the Ayat 6 and 7 of the Surah Baqara that is found in the first chapter of the Mushaf and have unfavorable opinions about the Qur’an and the Islam. In the case the interpretation is erroneous/flawed, these unfavorable opinions may convert into a clear animosity. If we should be honest, we have to admit that only a few people in our community have succeeded to comprehend these Ayat. In the light of this fact, anyone who meets the Qur’an for the first time may repel from Islam or even become against Islam, rather than they may get closer to Islam, because they may misunderstand the Qur’an or fail to understand it all together. For instance, in order to fully understand the Ayah; “Surely, as for those infidels; those who consciously deny the divinity of Allah and the fact that He is Rabb; it is same for them whether you warn them or not: they will not believe. Allah has set a seal upon their hearts and ears; there are curtains upon their eyes. And a great punishment is for them.” (Official Mushaf: Al-Baqara/6-7 (Division 399)), one must learn very well at least 5.000 Ayat from the Qur’an. The reason for this is that these Ayat were revealed about 10-15 years later than those that were revealed first. Those who were first to hear and recite these Ayat of the Surah Al-Baqara had the background to comprehend the meaning contained within them; so they understood them outright. The same Ayat are still fully comprehensible for those who have the background. But what about those who are yet to know about the Qur’an or do not have the background? Isn’t it quite possible for them to think “So, since Allah set a seal on hearts and ears of some and it does not benefit them to be warned, then it is all vain to make any efforts to learn what Islam is or what Allah wants” thus leaving the Qur’an not to be opened ever again?

Education and training require a system and a method. Just as those students in the preparatory class for English do not study Shakespeare right away or those who meet mathematics for the first time in their first year of the elementary school are not taught exponents or roots but natural numbers, so one who studies the Qur’an should not first receive information on the revelations which our Prophet was able to receive in the 22nd year of the revelations. Otherwise, it is not possible to think optimistically that those Ayat are understood properly.

This arrangement/organization of the Mushaf that we have prepared by taking the past ascertainments into consideration is the Mushaf by Hattat Kadroglu that is widely considered as the most serious work in this field. However, it must be known very well that the Medinan divisions were disorganized, many Ayat of the Surah Al-Baqara that we show as the 1st surah in the Medinan period were revealed just before the death of our Prophet. That is to say, they were revealed after many Medinan surat. In summary, there is not well chronological order in Medinan surat as in Meccan surat. The responsibility of this is upon those who organized the Mushaf like this – without fearing Allah –. Our dear readers should take notice of the divisions when reading the Qur’an. If Allah wills, in the future, may Medinan divisions be organized in the proper chronological order as well. This is a debt of faith for all believers which they should not omit.

ON THIS EDITION

The Qur’an is a book that is clear and explained in detail to the extent that it is comprehensible for the people. From the illiterate to the scholars, everyone understands the ayat of the Qur’an. There is no need to have a mediator [hodja, sheik] nor an explanation. Because the Qur’an is the most beautiful explanation made by our Rabb, the Supreme Of All. Furthermore, the clarity of the Qur’an is mentioned with such words as ayatun, beyyinatun, kitabun mubin, beyyenehu, mubeyyinat, tibyan and beyan (all derived from a single root, b-y-n, meaning to put clearly), and unambiguous nature of the Qur’an is emphasized for hundreds of times. Allah, the Supreme, used all kinds of literary techniques to ensure that each and every message in His book is understood properly and did not refrain from using such simple things as a mosquito as rhetoric devices. Thus divine messages were given clarity to the extent that anyone from the academicians to shepherds could understand.

Ultimately, slaves and seniors alike understood the Qur’an and became a believer right away; many others like Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab covered up the truth even though they understood very well for it was not to their advantage.

While this is the way the Qur’an originally was, today it is not possible to understand the Qur’an from the current Mushafs that we have and their interpretations as easily as it was in the early periods. The reason for this that the Quran was not arranged properly and chronologically; divisions, paragraphs, chapters were disorganized; some errors were made when copying; there have been degenerations in the Arabic Language while there were also developments and in addition to that, many religious books were written in the name of the religion so that boundaries have been put between the Qur’an and the people.

In order to overcome these boundaries, we have elaborated the Ayat and the words in the Ayat for years. The result of this study has been offered to the people under the title “Tebyinu’l Qur’an”. How this interpretation that you will read here was made and why the relevant meaning was preferred is explained in detail in the Tebyinu’l Qur’an. The reasons for differences from current and previous interpretations and translations are elaborated and supported with solid resources. In brief, to reach this concise interpretation, a study of eight volumes consisting ten thousands of pages has been made.

BASMALA IN THE MUSHAF

The Basmala that are recited before each surah were not originally in the Qur’an but added later to mark the line between two consecutive surah. There are two instances of Basmala in the Qur’an. One of these two instances is at the beginning of the Ayat collectively named as the Surah Al-Fatiha (can be found in the division 14 herein). The other one is in the beginning of the letter written by Solomon to Queen of Sheba that can be found under the Surah An-Naml (can be found in the division 144). We separated the divisions by assigning numbers to them.

AYAT NUMBERS

Ayat were not numbered in the first copies. In the current Mushaf, on the other hand, a single sentence is sometimes numbered 1 to 10 as 10 separate ayat while in certain cases, ten sentences, a paragraph or a chapter is shown as an ayah.

In our interpretation, we used a superscript, “2x…”, instead of the traditional numbering form, “1 – …” so the reader may not be distracted by the numbered sentences, and we may allow the reader to find the originals easily and compare them to other interpretations. At the end of every division, we added the number assigned in the Official Mushaf; the revelation number; name of the surah and Ayat numbers. For instance, the divisions that comprises of the Ayat 1-5 of the Surah Al-Alaq, which chronologically is the first but 96th in the Official Mushaf is shown as (1/96, Al-Alaq/1-5); and the divisions that comprises of the Ayat 114-115 of the Surah Al-Baqara, which chronologically is the 87th but 2nd in the Official Mushaf is shown as (87/2, Al-Baqara/114-115). The number that precedes the slash (87/?) indicates the position in the revelation order while the number that succeeds the slash (?/2) indicates the position in the Official Mushaf.

FOOTNOTES

As we mentioned above, the Qur’an is a crystal clear, concise book that was revealed as the most beautiful explanation. It does not need anyone to explain or elaborate it.

In this interpretation of ours, we explained for the reader the terms and the historical events mentioned in the footnotes. These are not intended to explain the Qur’an but inform the reader about the backdrop of the events.

COMPREHENSIBILITY-INCOMPREHENSIBILITY OF THE QUR’AN

In addition all above, the methods given in the Qur’an to help people understand and benefit from it are as follows:

• The reader must be clear minded (mutahhar); i.e. he must get rid of the viruses, any residue left by madhab (sect), mashrab (bias) and tariqa (cult).

• He must keep away from his devil as well; he must be objective about the matters he reads about; he must read in the name of Allah and ask for understanding and comprehension from Allah (we call it not adding personal opinions and not acting subjectively).

• The Ayat of the Qur’an must be organized in a proper order [tarteel]; the Qur’an must be read division by division; two divisions must not be intertwined; one must know that there may be weeks, months, even years between the revelation of two consecutive divisions and thus these are not linked.

• Any matter mentioned in the Qur’an must be learned from not only one Ayah but all Ayat pertaining thereof – in chronological order if possible – taking the unity of the Qur’an into account. While this would ensure that it is understood properly, it also helps that the respective matter is known completely. For instance, anyone who wants to learn about iddah [the period which a widowed woman (by divorce or death) mush have before getting married] will understand this concept completely if he reads all ayat pertaining thereof (divisions 450, 452, 514 and 601).

• And finally, background of the issues and event mentioned in the Qur’an; vernacular nature of the terms and judgments given should be considered as well.

Animals and trees are described according to the geography of Arabia. The Qur’anic expression Do they not see how camels are created? that is addressed to Arabs means ‘‘Do they not see how elephants are created?’’ for an Indian.

In many Ayat of the Qur’an, political, commercial and military affairs of Mecca and Medina are referenced and such names pertaining thereof and terms like riba (income that is earned without risk, effort), zihar, ila, talaq (divorce), nikah (engagement/marriage agreement), etc.; also proper names such as Abu Lahab, Zayd; Battles of Badr, Uhud, Trench, Hunayn and Tabouk, and the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah are mentioned. Encyclopedic knowledge about these terms will help people to better understand the Qur’an. We have tried to show these in the footnotes.

Thus, the Qur’an will make people believe and guide them to the most sound path; the right path, act of reason; mental and spiritual maturity, maturity which is necessary to acquire the good. It will help people to achieve the awareness to distinguish between good and evil and will be the cure for mental illnesses, a recipe of salvation from depression and adversity, a light in the darkness, and the spirit/life of the individuals and communities. Therefore, individuals and the communities will be saved from being corrupted in every aspect.

I hereby invite all followers of the Qur’an to introduce humanity to the Qur’an. This is a debt of faith and conscience. I believe that, when the Qur’an is introduced to the people in a plain manner, those who are the people of reason will definitely enter to the religion of Allah in masses and Islam will become the religion that is most coveted once again as it actually is.